


100% PERFECT MATCH!

by shineelover



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M, University AU, bokuto and akaashi never met in high school, good ol soulmate au, hooty hoo, neither did kuroo and kenma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-03
Updated: 2016-01-24
Packaged: 2018-05-11 13:56:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5628991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shineelover/pseuds/shineelover
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Akaashi wasn't the kind of person to believe in instant gratification. He believed that everything in life took effort, and if anything good came to him out of nowhere, then it was really only his hard work making room for luck. But luck wasn't what got him promoted to vice captain of his high school volleyball team, nor was it what earned him a scholarship to Tokyo University, and it definitely wasn't what he needed to find a soulmate. </p><p>[Soulmate App AU in which you learn about your soulmate one fact at a time]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. An Early Bird and a Night Owl Never Meet (Without Some Prompting)

**Author's Note:**

> Here we go, soulmate app AU! Hope you all enjoy reading as much as I do writing these stupid nerds in love

Akaashi wasn't the kind of person to believe in instant gratification. He believed that everything in life took effort, and if anything good came to him out of nowhere, then it was really only his hard work making room for luck. But luck wasn't what got him promoted to vice captain of his high school volleyball team, nor was it what earned him a scholarship to Tokyo University, and it definitely wasn't what he needed to find a soulmate.

The first time he heard that word, he was hunched over his homework in his dorm room. It was late into the night, well past dusk, and he was still rewriting his notes. About an hour ago his brain had stopped recognizing the characters on the page and registered them as nothing more than incomprehensible scribbles. From the other side of the room, Kenma was laying on his bed and playing a game on his phone, completely oblivious to Akaashi's exhaustion.

Without breaking focus, Kenma called to Akaashi. "Have you heard of that soulmate thing yet?" he asked.

Akaashi figured he was talking about a new game or something. He looked up for the first time in hours and shook his head. His neck cracked at three different places.

Kenma was still facing up at his game. "It's a new app that can find your soulmate for you apparently," he said. "You just download it and it gives you all kinds of information about someone.”

That sounded like a hoax someone made up to cheat people out of their money, but Kenma told him it was completely free.

"So," Akaashi said, rubbing the dryness out of his eyes. "A phone application is going to tell me all about someone who's supposed to be my soulmate." His voice was completely flat and soaked with skepticism.

A crashing noise and gloomy jingle trailed from Kenma's phone. He sighed and lowered it to his lap.

"People say it's helped them find their soulmates," Kenma said. He airquoted when he said 'soulmate.' "But it's also split people apart because their partners sounded nothing like the people the app described to them."

Akaashi sighed. "That's really incredible,” he said. “Sounds like a big joke." Then again, some people lived according to what their horoscope said every morning, so it wasn't that far-fetched that when romance was involved, people believed anything.

Kenma sat up and shrugged. "It sounded like an elaborate game to me so I downloaded it a few days ago. Now I get obscure facts this person every day."

Akaashi quirked his eyebrow. "Oh yeah? Like what?" he asked.

"It doesn't tell you their name or anything like that,” Kenma said, “but so far it told me that they're insecure about their hair and that their favorite food is grilled salted mackerel pike.” He made a face.

“That could be anyone,” Akaashi said, furrowing his brow. It sounded like those personality tests that made the answers as vague as possible so everyone could feel special.

Kenma started up a new game on his phone and laid back down on his bed. “I wonder if yours would tell you the same thing as mine,” he muttered.

Akaashi looked at the clock. If he went to bed right this minute, he could muster up about six hours sleep, which was more than enough to last through three classes and volleyball practice afterwards. He had an hour break between practice and his part time job, so he figured he could find somewhere quiet on campus to nap. He looked down at his half-finished notes and sighed. Outside, the hooting of an owl echoed through the night. Akaashi didn't have time for a relationship let alone time for unnecessary distractions, but he felt a niggling sense of curiosity in the back of his head.

Of course, it was all fake. There was no way that a computer could tell him who he was meant to be with. There had to be some algorithm the app used to generate ambiguous yet pleasing and compatible traits. How many millions of people in the world could fit into these categories?

Akaashi expected nothing when he pulled out his phone and scrolled through the listing of new apps. At the top of the list was a tiny orange square and a red heart: _100% PERFECT MATCH!_

He tapped the icon and was brought to the description page.

“ _100% PERFECT MATCH!”_ it read. “ _GUARANTEED AND FOOLPROOF. AUTHENTIC ROMANCE MADE SIMPLE FOR THE MODERN LOVER. CATCHING YOURSELF FANTASIZING ABOUT 'THE ONE'? LOOK NO FURTHER! WE CAN FIND THE PERFECT ONE FOR YOU!”_

Under the description was a slew of reviews on both extremes. Most people expressed gratitude for finding their soulmates, not without zealous affirmation that the app really worked. On the other hand, heartbroken lovers bemoaned the loss of their relationships, which ended because their partners didn't match the app's descriptions at all. Strangely enough, Akaashi couldn't find any comments doubting if the app really worked or not.

He tapped the download button then threw his phone on to his bed. Looking back to his notes, he mentally calculated how long it would take him to finish and therefore how much sleep he could actually get tonight.

When his notes were finally complete, he'd completely forgotten about the app. After he brushed his teeth and washed his face, he slipped into bed and checked his phone. Kenma was already asleep, snoozing quietly across the room.

Akaashi darted his eyes to the clock and groaned. It looked like another five hour sleep night again. In the darkness, he squinted at his phone's harsh light. He had two new notifications, both from 100% Perfect Match.

The first: “ _Welcome to 100% Perfect Match! Congratulations on taking the first step to finding that perfect one! You will receive one fact about your certain someone per day. Nothing too obvious, of course! That means no names and no physical descriptors and no gender. It wouldn't be any fun if we told you that, would it? If you find your soulmate through us, good for you! If you're skeptical at all, go and find your true love the good old fashioned way. No judgement! But again, where's the fun in that? Take this as seriously as you want to, but only if you're enjoying yourself. Good luck!”_

The second notification was the first fact about his apparent soulmate. What could it possibly tell him? Akaashi knew himself well enough to know what kind of people he liked. He had to admit, though, the app itself was quite well made. When he tapped the notification, a little box tied with a red ribbon danced around the screen and popped open, shooting tiny pixel confetti everywhere. Through the streamers, Akaashi squinted at the sentence.

_1\. Your one true love always gets a full night's sleep!_

Akaashi clicked his tongue and smacked his phone on to the night stand. Weren't they supposed to pick traits that made you feel butterflies in your stomach and your heart beat faster? All Akaashi knew was that he was already annoyed by his supposed potential 'soulmate.' He rolled onto his side and tried his best to get a full night's sleep in four and a half hours.


	2. The Type of Guy Who Hides His Feelings (Only the Important Ones)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Can't a guy like another guy just because he's good at volleyball?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow!! Thanks for the support everybody! This is my first multi-chapter fic, so I hope everyone enjoys reading just as much as I enjoy writing!

Bokuto felt great that morning. He went for a run, made breakfast, showered, and still had time to kill before class started. He figured he could glance over his class notes, but just the thought made him tired. It was only the beginning of the semester, but he was already falling behind in a few classes. Worrying wasn't going to make a difference though, so Bokuto pushed that thought out of his head. He had plenty of time to study later.

As usual, he took a nice, relaxing nap during his afternoon class, right before making his way towards volleyball practice. The gym was still fairly empty, but all the first year members were there, still arriving early to make a good impression. Bokuto scanned the room and noticed Kuroo on the bleachers searching through his bag, but more importantly, his eyes immediately darted to the first year setter he was looking for.

Akaashi Keiji was their team's genius new setter. Rumor had it that whatever tuition Akaashi had left after his academic scholarship, he paid off with his volleyball scholarship. Bokuto could tell just by looking at him that he was disciplined, more disciplined than Bokuto could ever dream to be, yet his eyes exuded a kind, gentle aura, the kind that made people feel comfortable.

That was the only reason Bokuto took such a liking to the first year: he was just too incredibly smart not to talk to him. Who didn't plaster a huge grin across their face when seeing someone so interesting? And honestly, who didn't feel a thrum in their hearts when talking to a genius?

Akaashi was helping the other first years set up the nets when Bokuto bounded over to him.

“Akaashi!” Bokuto boomed. He clapped Akaashi's shoulder. “Ready to toss for me today?”

Akaashi had tensed at his voice but relaxed when he felt Bokuto's hand on his shoulder.

“You're not the only one I need to toss to, Bokuto-san,” he replied.

“But you're the only one who knows how to set to me right!” Bokuto argued.

Akaashi sighed. “Don't be rude. You better not let the other setters hear you say that,” he said.

“No need to be modest, Akaashi,” Bokuto asserted. “I know you're the best one here!”

Akaashi frowned. “What did I just say, Bokuto-san? Go talk to Kuroo-san if you're not going to help set up,” he said.

Did he say something wrong? He just wanted to compliment Akaashi, and if Bokuto was being truthful with himself, he was being completely honest. At a loss at what to do, he grabbed the end of the net and dragged it over to where Akaashi was setting up the pole.

On second glance, he noticed the sullen bags underneath Akaashi's eyes. His posture, too, slouched just a little bit.

“Hey hey,” Bokuto said. “Did you get enough sleep last night, Akaashi?”

Akaashi stared at him, completely stoic, and replied, “I have a busy schedule. Sometimes I have to sacrifice a few hours of sleep, but it's alright as long as everything gets done.”

“That's not good, Akaashi! Your health is more important than anything else! You should take a day off every once in a while,” Bokuto said.

Akaashi simply nodded. “I will, Bokuto-san,” he replied.

The coach walked through the doors, and practice officially started. Bokuto didn't get a chance to talk to Akaashi throughout, but he didn't miss any opportunities to glance over at him, especially when he tossed. Even with the amount of sleep he'd gotten last night, Akaashi still tossed flawlessly throughout the entire practice. The way he glanced over at Bokuto periodically didn't go unnoticed either. After they finished, Akaashi had rushed out of the gym before Bokuto could talk to him again.

Outside, the evening sky was a pleasant shade of pink as he and Kuroo made their way to their dorm on the other side of campus. Kuroo was scrolling through his phone, the tell-tale jingle ringing between them.

“Are you still keeping up with that soulmate thing?” Bokuto asked.

“Dude, you don't understand. I know people who've used it and actually found their soulmates. Don't knock it till you try it,” Kuroo said. He jabbed him in the ribs. “I know you got your eyes on a certain first year setter.”

Bokuto straightened. “How do you know that?” He was basically yelling.

Kuroo's eyes were still scanning his phone as he laughed. “Who _doesn't_ know, man?”

Kuroo was the biggest asshole Bokuto knew, but strangely, he was also the nicest guy he knew as well. He never went too far with his teasing, and whenever Bokuto felt low in the dumps, he always tried to lift his spirits. The thing was, Kuroo's idea of cheering him up was urging him to find a date, which in itself was probably him projecting his own woes onto someone else, to be honest.

“What does your dating app say now?” Bokuto asked.

“Nothing useful.” Kuroo shrugged. “They're not very social apparently. That narrows it down to about every hermit in the world.”

His shoulders sagged but immediately perked up again.

“You know,” he began. “One of my classmates is actually roommates with Akaashi.”

“Oh, is that right?” Bokuto replied, trying not to sound too interested.

Kuroo brightened, his stride getting more of a bounce. “Akaashi's roommate isn't the type of guy to get excited about a lot of things. Or anything really, especially romance,” he said. He accented his last words with a cheesy French accent.

Bokuto's heart sank. This couldn't possibly be going where he thought it was going...

Kuroo leaned in and lowered his voice. “But he does like video games, and he will do a favor if I get him some new release,” he said. He grinned, all toothy and full of mischief.

“You did not,” Bokuto said, to which Kuroo only nodded. “You did not! Dude, you didn't!”

“He made Akaashi get the app!” Kuroo proclaimed.

Bokuto clutched his own hair and let out a scream in frustration. “Gah! Why did you do that? What if the person Akaashi gets isn't me?”

“Aha!” Kuroo exclaimed. He pointed at Bokuto like a triumphant toddler. “So you do you believe in the soulmate thing! And you do like Akaashi!”

“Of course I like Akaashi!” Bokuto exclaimed, but seeing Kuroo's satisfied smile made him panic. “But not in, like, that way you know? Can't a guy like another guy just because he's good at volleyball?”

Kuroo ignored him. “The only way to make sure that Akaashi's soulmate isn't you is to check if your soulmate isn't Akaashi,” he said.

“Is it?” Bokuto asked. He couldn't keep the interest out of his voice any longer.

“Yeah, man, I have a good feeling about this. Don't ask me how. I just do,” Kuroo said.

It wasn't that he didn't trust Kuroo; it was that he was reluctant to trust him when it came to stuff like this. Three years of being single back in high school had not done Kuroo any favors.

A series of frantic actions later, the tiny orange icon was finally on Bokuto's phone. After clicking out of the initial welcome message, Bokuto pressed the notification that Kuroo was pointing excitedly at. He stood behind him, clutching his shoulders and looking more eager than Bokuto, who felt more nervous than anything. As the little pixel box danced around, Bokuto swallowed.

_2\. Your one true love is insecure about his accomplishments! That's a bit sad, isn't it?_

A long moment of silence passed between the two.

“What does _that_ mean?” Kuroo asked.

Bokuto sighed. Of course Akaashi wasn't the one. How could someone so perfect possibly be his soulmate? Not to say that Bokuto wasn't a great guy and all, but Akaashi was just on a whole different level.

“It means that it's not Akaashi,” Bokuto said. “How can a guy like him be insecure about anything he does?”

Kuroo pressed a finger to his mouth and hummed. “I thought for sure...” he mumbled, but shook his head. “You can't be certain, though. Have I ever been wrong?”

Bokuto sighed. It wasn't a big deal. He and Akaashi could still be friends, he was still his setter. It wasn't like he felt anything more towards Akaashi anyway. Maybe it was just the sting of hypothetical rejection. Besides, he had more important things to worry about, like his grades and volleyball.

“Insecure about everything, huh?” Kuroo muttered thoughtfully. “Sounds like a real winner.”

Kuroo offered to buy them take-out for dinner, and by the end of the night, Bokuto had nearly forgotten all about the whole soulmate thing, at least until he saw Akaashi at practice again.


	3. Maybe He Is(n't) A Simpleton After All

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “So, Akaashi,” he boomed. “Come here often?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3, hope you're all enjoying this as much as I am!!

_2\. Your one true love's favorite food is yakiniku! Yum!_

Akaashi didn't agree with Bokuto and Kuroo that he was a recluse. Sure, he wasn't the most outgoing or sociable person he knew, but he had his share of friends and people he studied with after class, and he tried to go out at least every other weekend. All things considered, Akaashi lived a pretty simple life, albeit average to some and apparently reclusive to others.

That was how he ended up getting dragged to a sleazy club a little ways away from campus on Friday night. He mentally replayed the events leading up to him standing in a mass of sweaty university students while he himself was still unfortunately too sober for this. (Bokuto had promised to return with drinks. On him of course.)

Akaashi remembered that morning he was hunched over his desk in his dorm room. Friday was his only day of rest, with early classes, no volleyball practice, and no shifts at work. He usually just stayed in his room, thankful for the peace and time to wrap up any loose strings from the past week and prepare for anything in the upcoming one. Kenma was at his desk playing a computer game, as he had no classes either. He really was lucky to have landed a quiet roommate like Kenma.

...was what Akaashi thought before someone started pounding at their door like a maniac. Kenma sighed but refused to look away from his screen. Akaashi got up to open the door, not bothering to look through the peep hole first, and the two standing outside were the last two people he expected to see.

“Bokuto-san,” he said, then paused. “And Kuroo-san.”

“What are you doing here?” Kuroo asked. He could tell he was feigning surprise.

“I live here. What are you doing here?” he asked.

“I'm here to see Kenma,” Kuroo said, peeking his head into their room.

Kenma groaned. “Tell him I'm not here.”

Kuroo made his way past Akaashi anyway and dropped a box onto Kenma's desk, then plopped onto his bed. Bokuto followed him, but stood in the middle of the room instead. This was the first time Akaashi saw either of them outside of volleyball practice, and he honestly had no idea what to say, for many different reasons. Kenma wasn't much help either; he was still focused on his computer screen.

“How do you two know each other?” Akaashi asked.

“We're in the same physics lecture,” Kuroo declared, as if that fact itself warranted pride.

Bokuto cut in, eager to get his word in. “Funny seeing you here, Akaashi, eh?” His words rushed out of his mouth, like they would disappear if he didn't say them fast enough. He scratched the back of his head and continued.

“It's not like I expected to see you or anything, but hey! Nice surprise right, Kuroo?”

“Yeah, serendipitous even,” Kuroo jeered.

Bokuto furrowed his brows, then shook his head.

“Anyway,” he began. “Since you're here, you know, unexpectedly, ah, uh-what are you doing tonight?” He began to rub his neck and looked decidedly anywhere _but_ at Akaashi.

“Just studying,” he replied cautiously.

“Great! Why don't you go out with me and Kuroo tonight? There's a pretty sweet club right by campus,” he hooted.

Did Bokuto really come to his room just to ask him to go to a club?

“Wow, great idea, man,” Kuroo announced. They were both terrible actors. “Kenma, why don't you come too?”

Akaashi tried to decline, told them that he had a lot of work to do, but it didn't seem like they were too keen on listening; they were acting like he had already agreed to go. Kenma frowned at Kuroo and refused, but Kuroo mentioned something about not signing Kenma into class again if he ever decided to play hooky, and that was how they both ended up getting roped into a drunk, sweaty mess of a situation.

 

The music wasn't too unpleasant, it was just _loud_. Trap music blared from the front of the dark room, its beats physically palpable in the air. Strobe lights flashed around the room, stopping on Akaashi's eyes every so often. The mass of people danced non-stop in the throes of music and alcohol and whatever else.

Akaashi did want to catch up on his schoolwork, but more importantly he wanted to fix his sleep schedule. He'd gotten roughly 30 hours of sleep that week. Pretty standard, but he'd still like to relax even for a little. Even on his best days he wouldn't find himself on the side of a crowded dance floor. He preferred quieter outings, which just brought more attention to the glaring question of, Why was he here in the first place?

Bokuto's spiky white hair popped out of the crowd, and, thank goodness, he had two drinks in his hand.

“C'mon, Akaashi! Lighten up!” Bokuto yelled over the music. He handed Akaashi a drink, then downed his own.

Bokuto's normal indoor voice was just as loud as his club voice, so Akaashi couldn't tell if he was drunk or not.

“I'm not really in the mood to dance, Bokuto-san,” he said. He sipped his drink.

Bokuto pouted, his shoulders falling dramatically.

“Where's Kenma?” Akaashi asked. The minute they walked into the building Kenma already had his phone out, ready to ignore everything until they left. But Kuroo was way ahead of him. He ushered him straight to the bar, then towards the dance floor where Akaashi had eventually lost them.

Bokuto pointed towards the far end of the room, where he proclaimed that “they seem to be having a good time.” Akaashi tilted his head and saw an incredibly uncomfortable Kenma swaying (no doubt what he thought was passable dancing) and Kuroo dancing wildly around him and waving his arms (in a way which he no doubt thought was smooth), obviously more drunk than before. He didn't know whether he felt more pity or embarrassment, and whether he felt more of it for Kenma or more for Kuroo.

Bokuto took another gulp of his drink and stood up straight.

“So, Akaashi,” he boomed. “Come here often?”

Akaashi wondered if perpetual eye-rolling could be described with a single emotion. He grabbed Bokuto's hand and led him towards the bar where they could both finally sit down. The fact that his hand felt unusually warm and fit perfectly into his own did not go unnoticed.

Akaashi thought back to why he was here again, and if he was forced to make an excuse, he'd say it was hard to argue with both Bokuto and Kuroo at the same time, but the truth was, he found it strangely and incredibly difficult to say no to Bokuto. He normally wasn't fond of loud, boisterous people, but he caught himself comfortable with Bokuto despite his hooting and yelling. So even though he pretended to be put out and grumpy about being dragged out, Akaashi secretly rejoiced at spending some time with Bokuto outside of practice.

Surprisingly, Akaashi could block out all the music and singing and cheering while talking to Bokuto. They didn't talk about anything consequential: volleyball, class, friends, funny stories from work, that one time Kuroo went to spike but accidentally crashed into the net instead. Bokuto still marveled every time Akaashi mentioned his harsh coursework, which gave Akaashi little pangs of anxiety. Bokuto admired him for his dedication, both on and off the court, although Akaashi wished he wouldn't. He wasn't as great as Bokuto made him out to be.

Their empty glasses sat on the bar long forgotten. Eventually, Bokuto started drumming his fingers restlessly on the bar. Akaashi recognized the same impatient look he had when he was recovering from one of his 'moods' during practice.

“What is it, Bokuto-san?” he asked.

“What's your favorite food?” he blurted.

That certainly wasn't what he expected.

“I suppose it depends on what I'm in the mood for,” Akaashi responded.

“No, no. You have to have an all time favorite, right?”

“Just one?”

Bokuto nodded. Akaashi thought all food was good food, but if he had to pick one...

“Nanohana with mustard dressing, I suppose,” he said.

“Really?!” Bokuto exclaimed. He stood up from his seat. “You would say that's your favorite, right? If your life depended on it, that's what you would say is your favorite food?”

“What? Yes, that's what I would-” Akaashi began, but he suddenly noticed Kenma pushing a weary looking Kuroo towards them. As they reached the bar, Kuroo collapsed into the seat next to Bokuto.

“I think he had more than enough to drink,” Kenma said dryly.

“Says who?” Kuroo argued. “The night is still young!”

Kenma and Akaashi both shot him a look. It wasn't the flashing lights making his skin look slightly green.

Akaashi and Bokuto were both completely sober at that point and decided it was time to leave. Heaving Kuroo under his arm, Bokuto followed him and Kenma towards the entrance. Kuroo hadn't been wrong; it was still pretty early, barely breaking midnight. The mid-October air offered a refreshing respite from the stuffiness inside the club.

They ended up grabbing a taxi back to campus, which stopped first at Bokuto and Kuroo's dorm. Bokuto stared at Akaashi for a long moment when the car stopped, looking desperately like he wanted to say something.

Right before Akaashi wished him a goodnight, Bokuto blurted, “Well, see you at practice, Akaashi!” then stumbled out of the car with Kuroo before Akaashi could respond.

The taxi took off towards the other side of campus. Akaashi sighed, then checked the time on his phone. Just past midnight, and midnight meant a new notification from that soulmate app again. Akaashi glanced over at Kenma, who had been on his phone the whole ride.

He tapped the notification, which again prompted a little dancing animation of a present. As it burst open, Akaashi scanned the words.

_3\. Your one true love sees the greatness in everybody! How open-minded!_

Another vague one, huh?

“Hey, Kenma,” he said, turning his phone towards him. “What does yours say?”

Kenma huffed. “Doesn't handle alcohol well apparently.” He rolled his eyes. “At least Kuroo isn't the only one.”


	4. He's Not Usually This Tired (Only Kind of Tired)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dates? They weren't dating. They were just friends and teammates who go to the same school and who happen to be each other's life partners. Soulmates but, like, platonically.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the support everybody! It makes me smile when I see such nice comments! :) Enjoy!

_Your one true love snores when they're tired! Annoying or endearing?_

 

“Nanohana with mustard dressing! That's what he said, word by word!” Bokuto cried, punctuating his words by slamming the table. He was sitting at the dining table in their dorm with Oikawa and Kuroo, who was slurping a mug of coffee and squinting at nothing in particular. Oikawa eyed him warily, afraid that he was going to puke for the third time that morning. (The first time was after he'd answered Oikawa about how much he drank and Oikawa had laughed and called him a lightweight. The second was right after stealing a piece of wheat toast from Oikawa's breakfast.)

“It has to be him,” Bokuto continued. “He swore on his life that that was his favorite food!”

“That's not really the most...specific food,” Oikawa said, shifting his seat away from Kuroo.

“Nah,” Kuroo mumbled. “It's definitely him. The wedding's planned for next week.”

“Do you think Akaashi knows yet? Maybe I should tell him that we're made for each other?” Bokuto mused.

“Okay, no,” Oikawa said, the voice of reason and the voice of joy kill. “You barely know the guy and you're going to tell him you're soulmates?”

“What's wrong with that?” Kuroo piped, ignoring Oikawa's gawking. “This way you get to hang out without going on any awkward dates.”

Bokuto jumped. Dates? They weren't dating. They were just friends and teammates who go to the same school and who happen to be each other's life partners. Soulmates but, like, platonically.

“For now,” Kuroo said. “Are you saying you wouldn't want to date Akaashi?”

“Not relevant, man!” Bokuto cried. Thinking about Akaashi like that gave him a funky feeling in his chest, and he didn't want to deal with that right now. “Me and Akaashi are just friends, but I need to figure out if we're made for each other!”

Oikawa looked incredulously from Kuroo, who looked queasy again, to Bokuto, and groaned.

* * *

A week had passed since he'd gone out with Akaashi. Every day he received a new fact from the app, and all of them were fun, pointless things, such as favorite drink (milk tea), favorite animal (owl), favorite book (something Bokuto had to look up; he didn't know what 'post-modern' or 'magical realism' were. He had to look those up too). He tried to bring these up with Akaashi during practice, but he always rushed out of the gym before Bokuto could catch up to him, and even when they talked before practice, Bokuto couldn't figure out a way to slide in these details without turning the conversation into an interview. But Bokuto still kept hope; maybe Akaashi did like milk tea even though he'd never seen him drink it before, maybe he did like owls, and maybe he did read weird books Bokuto knew nothing about. Akaashi was smart like that.

With exams coming up, Bokuto couldn't afford to think too much about about this, yet the thought of Akaashi in the back of his mind made him smile every so often. Until one morning, when Bokuto checked the app and realized that maybe Oikawa had been right. Nanohana with mustard dressing wasn't really a rare food to like after all.

 _Your one true love likes the calm and quiet types. How peaceful!,_ it read.

Of course it wasn't him. He'd known from the beginning that a guy like Akaashi couldn't be his soulmate. He'd grasped at one minor fact that _somewhat_ suggested that Akaashi really was the person the app was talking about, but he was just trying to trick himself into believing what he wanted to believe. But with this new fact, Bokuto knew for certain that the 'quiet type' definitely couldn't refer to him.

Kuroo was the first to pick up on his mood like some kind of satellite. He knew how to handle Bokuto's 'moods' the best, after all. So that afternoon, after missing the very first spike during practice, Bokuto sulked off to the benches. Akaashi was in top form, as usual, though he glanced over at Bokuto every so often with concern. Kuroo brought over a water bottle and, after prodding and pestering Bokuto throughout the break, was presented with his phone, opened up to the notification he'd received that morning.

“Likes the calm and quiet types? No problem, dude. You don't _like_ your soulmate, you love them.”

Somehow, that made Bokuto feel better and worse at the same time. A little bit of the hopelessness vanished from his heart, but that weird fluttery feeling came back to take its place. He punched Kuroo in the arm, feeling better enough to get back into practice. Akaashi still eyed him strangely, even letting his eyes linger for a second or two too long after he spiked.

Bokuto spent Friday night, when there was no volleyball practice, holed up in the library studying for an exam he had next week. The middle of October meant the beginning of autumn, leaves changing color, and for students, the beginning of midterms. The entire library was packed, every seat occupied by students typing away on laptops and chugging coffee. Bokuto maneuvered around clusters of laptop and phone chargers, searching for a place, any place, to sit.

Bokuto's favorite place to study was by the eighth floor windows that had a wonderful view of the sunset. He headed there first, but unfortunately, that was where everyone else liked to study too. The desks that lined the windows were sectioned off into fourths, separated into personal spaces by wooden panels. As expected, just by a glance, Bokuto could see the tops of heads filling every seat. As he turned to look somewhere else, he heard someone call out as quietly as possible.

“Bokuto-san!”

Bokuto broke out into a huge grin that took up his whole face. “Akaashi!” he cried.

A wave of annoyed tongue clicks and hushes came at him.

“Don't be so loud in the library,” Akaashi scolded. _Calm and quiet,_ Bokuto immediately remembered.

After his initial surprise, Bokuto noticed the dark, sunken circles under Akaashi's eyes and the way his hair was out of place, probably from running his hands through it repeatedly.

“What are you up to?” Akaashi asked.

After Bokuto explained that he couldn't find a single place to sit, Akaashi offered to share his desk space by the window.

“Really?” He perked up. “Akaashi, you're a life saver!”

Sprawled out on Akaashi's desk was everything he could've possibly needed: his laptop and charger, two chunky textbooks, an open pencil case overflowing with pens and highlighters, a cluster of notebooks, a thermos, and a pile of unopened snacks. Akaashi moved some of his notebooks into his bag and slid over to make room for Bokuto.

At first, Bokuto thanked his every lucky star, for getting his favorite seat at the library _and_ getting to sit with Akaashi. But his blessing quickly turned into a curse. He'd gotten about ten minutes of studying in before he realized _just_ how close Akaashi was. The desk was only meant for one person after all. Their knees bumped whenever they moved, and when Bokuto lifted his head, Akaashi's face was close enough to touch, if he leaned in just a few more centimeters...

“What is it Bokuto-san?” Akaashi didn't look away from his computer screen.

Was he staring? How long had he been staring?

“You just look, uh, really focused! What are you studying, by the way?” he blurted, grasping desperately onto any subject change.

“Biology,” Akaashi replied. “I'm on the pre-med track. What about you?”

“Economics! But that's nothing compared to med!”

Akaashi yawned and leaned back. “That's very impressive in itself, Bokuto-san. Not everyone can study something so difficult.”

“Eh? You think so, Akaashi? You really think so?” Bokuto sat up.

“Hmm? What are you talking about? I do think so,” he replied, then returned to his work.

More and more people trailed out of the library. The people outside on the street dwindled as well, until it was almost empty. The sun had set long ago. Bokuto forced himself not to think about Akaashi, about how close he was and how he could hear his every sigh. He'd gotten a pretty strong momentum on his studying until, this time, he caught Akaashi staring at him. When he asked what was up, Akaashi simply replied, “Nothing. It's just strange to see you so quiet and focused,” and then turned back to his work.

By the time Bokuto finished, it was a bit past midnight and definitely time for sleep. Akaashi insisted he was staying for another few hours, arguing that tomorrow was Saturday and therefore he could stay up as long as he wished. Bokuto took another glance over at Akaashi's weary, sunken eyes, and refused, urging Akaashi to go home and rest. He began to argue, but eventually he relented. He stood to gather his things, but, suddenly, his legs gave out and he collapsed into his seat.

“Akaashi?! Are you okay?”

“Yes, I'm fine. I just stood up too fast. It's nothing to worry about,” he groaned.

Bokuto bit his lip and furrowed his brow. He'd agreed to go home and rest, but was he even able to make it to his dorm? Akaashi began to pack up again, but Bokuto could practically feel the exhaustion rolling off his shoulders.

“Why don't you stay at my dorm tonight?” Bokuto offered.

Akaashi waved his hand. “Thank you, Bokuto-san, but I don't want to be a bother. I'm going back to my dorm.”

“What are you saying?! It's not a bother, and your dorm is all the way across campus. Mine's just down the block.”

Akaashi brought a hand to his chin. He obviously didn't want to walk thirty minutes to his dorm at one in the morning, alone, but he still had qualms about staying with Bokuto.

“I have to go to work early tomorrow,” Akaashi tried

“Even more reason to stay with me! You can get more sleep than if you walked all the way to your dorm.”

“Won't Kuroo-san mind?”

“Nah, he'll be happy to see you!”

“Is there even enough room for me to stay?”

“Of course!”

Akaashi hummed and scratched the back of his head. “Well, if you insist, Bokuto-san...”

* * *

Bokuto wondered why he never thought things through. It seemed like a good idea to invite Akaashi over, the right thing to do, even. But now, balancing on the edge of his bed and trying to slow his heartbeat, he realized that maybe some of his good ideas weren't so good.

They had quietly made their way through the living room, careful not to wake Oikawa in the room next over (Bokuto learned _not_ to wake him during the first week of the semester, when he and Kuroo had brought home forty dollars worth of Taco Bell and tried to get Oikawa to join in on the fun by screaming, “MIDNIGHT DINNER!!”)

Kuroo was snoring when they walked in but stirred from their hushed whispers.

“Ohoho? Is that Akaashi?” he asked groggily.

“Go back to sleep, bro.”

Bokuto set down his bag by his foot of his bed and placed Akaashi's on his desk. They both got ready for bed, Bokuto lending him some clothes and a new toothbrush. Back in the room, he offered his bed to Akaashi, but he refused.

“I can't sleep on your bed. I'll sleep on the couch in the living room,” he argued.

“Akaashi, no. You're the guest, you get the bed.”

“You're the host, you sleep on the bed.”

“Gah! It doesn't work like that!”

Akaashi walked out of his room and towards the dingy dorm couch in the living room.

“It's fine, Bokuto-san. It's just one night.”

“You're not gonna get any sleep! Akaashi!” he whined.

Suddenly, a long, melodramatic groan trailed out from Oikawa's room. Bokuto clutched Akaashi's hand, yanked him into his room, and locked the door.

“Just sleep on the bed,” he whispered. “I'll sleep on the floor. Nobody's sleeping on the couch if we already woke him. Trust me, he won't be happy in the morning.” He pointed towards Oikawa's room.

Akaashi sighed. “Why don't we just share the bed?”

Bokuto refused and tried to settle on the floor beside the bed, but Akaashi grabbed his wrist and pulled him up.

“The less we argue, the more sleep we'll get,” he whispered, which forced Bokuto to surrender.

That was how Bokuto ended up precariously on the edge of his one-person bed, trying not to smother Akaashi but also trying not to fall off. He was thankful Akaashi couldn't see his face; it probably looked as painfully embarrassed as he felt. At least, from his even breathing, Akaashi had fallen into a peaceful sleep. Soon enough, Bokuto's own heartbeat slowed down and the exhaustion finally caught up to him. Right before he knocked out, he heard a loud, obnoxious snore. Probably from Kuroo, as usual.


	5. Somewhere Far Away (Like the Countryside)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hello?” the guy said awkwardly. He was wearing baggy pajama pants and an oversized t-shirt that had the word, “Aliens?” printed across the front.

_Your one true love has a bad habit of jumping to worst case scenarios!_

Akaashi jolted awake. His phone alarm was ringing somewhere, but it sounded more muffled than usual. He sat up, rubbed his eyes, and yawned. He couldn't remember the last time he'd slept so well; not once during the night did he stir, nor did he lay awake for hours on end until his exhaustion got the better of him. In fact, he must've fallen asleep the moment he closed his eyes, something that rarely happened.

Akaashi moved to get off the bed, but somebody else was in it. His phone's alarm continued to ring the happy jingle.

“Turn it off!” a voice groaned. Across the room, a head of black hair peeked out between two pillows shoved against its sides.

This was not happening.

Akaashi scrambled out of the bed and turned off the alarm. 8 A.M. sharp. He tried to remember what happened last night: he was studying with Bokuto, he nearly passed out from standing up too fast, Bokuto managed to get him to stay the night, and then...

He snapped his head back to the bed, where Bokuto was sleeping soundly despite his annoying alarm. Half of his body leaned on the edge of the bed, and his arm dangled off the side. They had slept in the same bed together, and Akaashi was the one to insist that they do so. He was suddenly intensely thankful that he and Kuroo were still sleeping and therefore weren't able to see his quickly reddening face.

 _It's alright_ , Akaashi told himself as he gathered his things and changed into his own clothes. _We were both tired and just wanted to sleep on a bed. That's all._

He checked the time. Another hour until his shift started at work. He usually showered in the mornings, but there was no way he could make it to his dorm, shower, then get to work within an hour. As he walked into the living room, he humored the thought. Of course, knowing Sugawara-san, he wouldn't mind if he was late to work by a few minutes.

He was debating whether he should grab something to eat or not before he realized he had subconsciously wandered into the kitchen. A few eggs were boiling on the stovetop, along with some sauteed spinach in a pan. A tall, brown haired figured appeared behind the refrigerator with a loaf of wheat bread. He narrowed his eyes.

“Hello?” the guy said awkwardly. He was wearing baggy pajama pants and an oversized t-shirt that had the word, “Aliens?” printed across the front.

Before he could get out his name, Akaashi's stomach growled, and his eyes darted to the food on the stovetop.

“Wait,” the guy said, following Akaashi's gaze. “Are you Kuroo's friend? Or Bokuto's? You know what, it doesn't matter. Here.” He opened two pantry doors. “Take whatever you want.”

Inside was a jar of Nutella, two packs of cheap ramen, a bag of pretzels, and a half eaten packet of Skittles.

The guy returned to his breakfast on the stove. “Do you want to know why it's so empty?” he huffed. “It's because they eat all my food instead of getting their own! So eat up. See how they like it!”

“I'll pass,” Akaashi said, unsure of what to say. “I have to get going soon.” Nothing in that pantry was really “food” anyway.

“Suit yourself.” The guy went back to the fridge and poured out a glass of orange juice. As an afterthought, he introduced himself. His name was Oikawa Tooru, and he was in the same year as Bokuto and Kuroo. According to him, he was hit by a stroke of bad luck and ended up living with them for the whole year. In his own words, it was _literally_ the worst thing to ever happen to him, except for maybe his boyfriend going to a different university two hours away in the countryside. His only saving grace was that he didn't have to share the same room with Bokuto or Kuroo.

He offered a plate of eggs and spinach to Akaashi. “I always make extra, and you look hungry.”

“Thank you, Oikawa-san,” Akaashi said, accepting graciously. Oikawa really wasn't as bad (or, in Kuroo's words, as anal) as he and Bokuto had made him out to be.

“What's your name anyway?” Oikawa asked as they finished their breakfast at the dining table. He took a swig of orange juice.

“Akaashi Keiji,” he said. He pointed towards the room. “I'm a...friend of theirs.”

Oikawa spit out his juice all over the floor. “ _You're_ Akaashi?” he sputtered.

Akaashi narrowed his eyes and nodded cautiously.

Wiping his mouth with one hand and placing the other on Akaashi's shoulder, Oikawa said grimly, “From a straight 10,” he gestured to himself, “to a solid nine point five,” he gestured towards Akaashi, “you are way out of his league.”

Akaashi rose an eyebrow. “Out of what?” he began, but his phone alarm went off again, reminding him that he only had ten more minutes to get to work. He thanked Oikawa again for breakfast and rushed out of the dorm. Oikawa waved to him and gave him a sympathetic look.

* * *

Akaashi made it to work at exactly nine, an hour before the cafe opened. In a moment of peace, as he tied his apron in the break room, he remembered Oikawa's words: _out of his league_. For the life of him he could not figure out what that meant. Out of whose league? And how did Oikawa know his name? Maybe Kuroo was talking behind his back. He _had_ been awfully friendly with Akaashi lately, trying to get him to hang out with him and Bokuto all the time.

Akaashi tried to push that thought out of his mind. Thinking about Bokuto made him think of what happened last night. It wasn't a big deal, right? Friends shared beds all the time, he even shared beds back in high school when he stayed at hotels for volleyball matches, but this time it bothered him intensely for some reason, as if he had overstepped an unspoken boundary.

A hand clapped his shoulder. “What's wrong? You look like something's bothering you.”

Sugawara reached over him to grab his own apron and offered him a shining smile. It wasn't hard to see how Sugawara had recently landed the cafe's management position.

“I had sort of a rough night,” Akaashi replied, checking his uniform in the mirror.

“Oh yeah? You look well rested, so it couldn't have been that bad,” Sugawara said.

“Yeah, you look great, ready to take on this rush,” Sawamura piped from the doorway. He was already dressed for work and grabbing supplies from the shelves.

 _That's the problem, I'm too well rested,_ Akaashi thought, but he merely nodded.

“Take it easy today,” Sugawara chirped. He clapped Akaashi on the shoulder again, then made his way to the main floor. When he walked by Sawamura, he punched him on the shoulder instead, all the while keeping his serene smile.

Thankfully, the Saturday brunch rush kept Akaashi's body and mind busy. Dealing with the occasional rude customer was way more preferable than thinking himself into a hole about what happened with Bokuto. Usually, he and Sawamura could handle a shift by themselves, but today Sugawara jumped in a few times to help out. When the rush started to die down, Akaashi was too tired to think much about anything. While taking an order for a particularly persnickety customer, he felt his phone buzzing in his pocket, once, twice, three times, a few more times. It was unusual for him to get so many messages. After putting the order into the computer, Akaashi went to sit on a stool in the kitchen to catch his breath and check his phone. 7 unread messages, all from none other than Kuroo.

 

**From: Kuroo**

**ohoho so you finally came over?? >:3c**

 

**From: Kuroo**

**but why did you leave so soon??? :''(**

 

**From: Kuroo**

**bokuto was so sad to see u weren't here when he woke up**

 

**From: Kuroo**

**u broke his heart you monster**

 

**From: Kuroo**

**for payment you have to treat us to dinner tonight**

 

**From: Kuroo**

**unless you don't want me there, which I gotta say, first of all: why are u such a mean friend to me?? second: that's fine lol**

 

**From: Kuroo**

**but seriously you should go to dinner with bokuto**

 

Akaashi rubbed his temples. Kuroo was right. He did owe Bokuto for letting him stay at his place. He didn't really want to treat Kuroo, though. He was a bit tight with money these days, but the thought of going to dinner alone with Bokuto gave him a weird feeling in his chest. Anxiety? Anticipation? Akaashi wrote it off, telling himself that it would probably be too quiet and awkward without Kuroo there.

The chef dinged the bell and placed a new plate of food on the counter. Akaashi stood and hurriedly typed out a text.

 

**To: Kuroo**

**Sounds good. You two can meet at my dorm tonight at 6.**

 

This time, the lunch rush did nothing to distract Akaashi from his thoughts. _Anxiety_ , he thought again. Probably just a little nervous about money, that's it. That was why he was feeling a slight fluttering in his chest. That was all there was to it.


End file.
